While it’s important for the government to create a business friendly environment, it’s just as important to be smart about it.

One of the rare areas that receives bipartisan support for reform is spending on federal farm subsidies.

At 35 percent, the U.S. corporate tax rate is the second highest in the world. However, thanks to generous tax breaks and loopholes, the corporate tax isn’t nearly as severe as the top rate may indicate.

Last week it was revealed that G.E., America’s largest company, pays little to no income tax. The most unfortunate part of all this? It’s 100% legal.

A roundup of this morning’s must-read budget and economic stories.

If there’s one thing that has everyone across the ideological spectrum fed up, it’s corporate welfare.

During the Wall Street meltdown and subsequent financial crisis, the government took unprecedented steps buying toxic assets and bailing out hundreds of banks, lenders and other companies. Among the interventions, government assumed an ownership stake in the financial giant Citigroup.  The U.S. Treasury made two separate multibillion-dollar bailouts of Citigroup in 2008 and 2009, ultimately arriving at [...]

Financial regulation proposals are starting to receive mainstream attention.  How often do you see an all-star cast of former Saturday Night Live members and Heidi Montag make public policy commentary videos directed by Ron Howard? (scroll down to the bottom of this post for the videos) These videos are funny, and clearly financial sector regulation [...]

The Hill: Bailed-out firms start rebuilding on K St.: “Big banks and automakers bailed out by the government are now on a K Street shopping spree.” Census hiring blitz of 750,000 to cut jobless rate, offer boost to Obama: “Unemployment rate could drop by half a point and boost Obama, but workers will only be on [...]

UPDATE: We’ve had a great response to this blog. So we decided to take it a step farther. We hit the 8-28 rallies and quizzed attendees in their government spending IQ. Can they match the spending facts with the right President? (The answers might surprise you.) Watch here. At first glance former President Bush and [...]